Review: Scott Anderson/Kavi Gupta Gallery

*SCOTT ANDERSON, “Misiisto,” painting. Esperanto, the famed utopian attempt at a universal second language, continues to inform Scott Anderson, borrowing the word “Misiisto” to title his first solo exhibition at Kavi Gupta. Anderson’s style in and of itself acts as a fusional visual language, blending street art and surrealism, kitschy sci-fi illustration meeting a classic oil painting tradition. The landscapes depict the bounds of the visual continuum: spaces are ambiguously vast, ranging from big medieval chambers to even bigger skyscapes, populated by ritualistic characters that could be home in either the New Testament or the newest video game, all within a color palette as diverse as the visible spectrum of light. Persecuted by the likes of both Nazi Germany and Stalin, the Esperanto language represents optimism for the future complicated by the darkness of past failure. In much the same way, this collection of paintings visualizes the fantastic and infinite exploration of dark and vaguely prophetic imagery. (Lisa Larson-Walker)